


Norman's Fate

by RiYuYami



Series: Pulling Strings [13]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Character Death, Gen, Norman's fate in the au, he didn't deserve this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-05
Updated: 2017-12-05
Packaged: 2019-02-11 01:11:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12924126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RiYuYami/pseuds/RiYuYami
Summary: Whatever happened to that ol’ projectionist? Norman was known for keeping to himself, always hidden away, playing some cartoon on his projector, rarely ever saw him without it, watching everything with a careful eye…Seeing more than he should have…





	Norman's Fate

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, time for some sad stuff, and to any Norman fans (like myself), I am so sorry.
> 
> Once again, I say I’m not gonna write anything, but I’m almost done with one of my papers, so all is good, I can crank out a quick drabble.
> 
> Which... turned into a seven page one-shot that made me cry.
> 
> Takes place right before Long Forgotten Self, which is why it has an achievement-based name.
> 
> Warning: contains a mercy killing and character death
> 
> On with the fic.

Norman groaned, his head hurt so badly. What happened? Did something hit him or whatnot? Great, did a reel fall off a shelf and give him a knot on the head? Wouldn’t be the first time…

“So, you’re awake.”

Blinking, the man looked up, his glasses askew on his face as he spotted a figure sitting in front of him, in a specific chair. “Mr. Drew…?” He blinked, trying to look at him, but the room was dark, the light was dim in here. But in what little light there was, he could make out some familiar looking objects.

Wait… he knew this room…

Looking over his shoulder, he stared up at the mouth of the Ink Machine, a drop of ink dripping onto his shoulder. “M-Mr. Drew…?” He nervously asked, realizing that he seemed to be tied up. He also realized that they weren’t exactly alone in the room, another figure stood off to the side.

The damaged clothes, the ink-splotched skin, and the thinning mess of golden hair that continued to fall out with each passing day, hidden behind a mask… “Sammy?! What’s goin’ on?!” Norman gasped, struggling against the restraints.

“A little birdy told me something interesting, Mr. Polk.” Joey spoke up, staring down at the man with cold, calculating eyes. “They said you’ve seen some things here, some… interesting things. Care to tell me what you know?”

Norman narrowed his own eyes, shaking his head. He winced when Joey struck him across the face. “Talk, or the machine will make you.”

This got the projectionist’s attention.

He knew what Joey wanted to hear, he knew that the director wanted him to admit that he knew what was really going on. He knew of the Bendy clones that had been killed, he knew that Henry was really fired, he knew that Joey had killed employees in his attempts to make things perfect… he knew so much about the studio, more than he should, and he had been keeping silent about it, too scared to do anything.

He had no one to really tell, most of the humans here are either dead or corrupted, the Toons were nervous of him and his mysterious ways, except…

Bendy.

The little devil, he knew a lot of what Norman knew. Not everything, but some things. Norman wanted to fill in the gaps, tell him everything, but anytime Joey found out that Bendy knew more than he should, he’d turn off the machine, and it hurt the Toon greatly.

Norman wasn’t blind, he’s seen the changes.

He knew the leg and arm injuries weren’t accidents. The black lines, the passing through walls, the strange ability to move in the ink spills.

The changes to his body, his personality.

Bendy was changing because Joey was forcing him to pay for knowing too much, for rebelling against the 'script' Joey had given him, and the old man didn’t want to cause Bendy anymore trouble by telling him everything.

He wanted to protect the imp, and… honestly, he had confined in Bendy, in Susie, that he was going to leave and find Henry.

Bendy didn’t seem to like that idea, saying that the man left, why bring him back? Norman tried to tell him that Henry was fired, but the other didn’t seem to want to listen. However… he did ask Norman to take him with him, Boris and Alice as well, get them out of here…

Though Bendy looked nervous about it, his ink had begun to run as he asked this of the human. Norman knew why, Bendy was scared to be away from the machine, he needed it to live, apparently. At least that’s what he believed, that he constantly had to be around the ink of the Ink Machine or he’d died, and he was scared to die.

Can’t blame him, especially since he knows that all the other Bendys before him are dead, and he is full of their ink.

Norman wondered if Bendy really could die without the machine and ink, or if it was just Joey spinning tales. Alice and Boris were fine, they were okay outside of the ink, but Bendy seemed too scared to risk it. Joey’s got that poor boy all messed up in the head with his lies…

But it seemed like Bendy wanted to take the risk, at least to get his friends to safety.

Norman had told Susie, simply because she walked in on their conversation and had heard much of it.

But now the projectionist was wondering if she was the ‘little birdy’ that Joey mentioned, Susie wasn’t quite right in the head anymore, since she lost her position as Alice, since she kept toying with the ink, much like Sammy… and some of the others…

With a heavy sigh, Norman looked up at his boss, narrowing his eyes once more. “I ain’t gonna tell ya a thing. Ya’ll probably already know what I know, yeah?”

“I want to hear it from you.”

“Okay, here’s what I know.” He cleared his throat for dramatic effect. “You’re a monster.”

The slap he earned was worth it, he finally told off old man Drew.

“Maybe we should silence that tongue of yours, so you can’t tell anyone what you know. Sammy, bring it over.” Joey spoke, looking at the musician.

Sammy gave only a curt nod before grabbing something he had been standing near. It took only once glance for Norman to know exactly what it was.

It was a projector, one of his. It was set down next to him on the floor, which Norman noticed, to his horror, had a pentagram painted on it. Oh… oh god, no, he knew what this was… this was a ritual. “M-Mr. Drew…! No!” He screamed, struggling against the restraints.

No, no, no! He should have left when Henry was fired, should have taken his friends with him!

His poor wife, his kids…! Would he ever see them again?!

He… oh jeez, he can’t help the Toons escape this hell hole…

“I am so sorry, Bendy… Jessie, hun, I ain't comin' home tonight...” He whispered, staring at the floor as he heard the machine start up. Damnit, he should have opened his mouth before, should have told Bendy everything, even at the risk of him getting another off-model addition to him.

He should have called Henry like he had originally wanted, back when things were going from strange to horrific…

Norman screamed when the ink poured on him, it wasn’t cold like normal, it was scolding hot as the pentagram under him glowed a sickly yellow, the projector shaking next to him as it became soaked in ink.

Everything was turning black, black, black, the whole world was shaking like it was falling apart, and his body felt like it was both on fire and being pierced by ice cold shards.

His last thoughts were of his smiling wife, a sweet lady who made the best stews you’ve ever had, and his three kids, who were waiting at home for him.

Then everything went completely black.

\--

Light.

There was a light, shining everywhere, things looked so strange, lots of shadows, it was hard to focus.

Can’t hear much, everything sounds muffled, next to something spinning, flapping, like a finished film reel.

Hard to move, don’t know where this is, ink is everywhere.

Who are you?

Why do you feel… guilty and sad?

\--

“You gonna be able to handle this, Henry?” Boris asked the human who stood next to him in the elevator, the doors opening up to reveal that they were on level 14. Boris had never been to this level before, but he had heard rumors that it wasn’t a pleasant place to be.

A monster lived down here, and only fools would dare to get in its way.

“I’m sure,” Henry replied, gripping the axe he held tightly in his hands, “let’s just get this over with. She wants those stupid hearts, well… she’ll get ‘em. And then we can go home.”

The wolf gave him a nervous smile, telling him he’d be here waiting for him, ready with the elevator in case anything happens. Henry offered him a smile in return before stepping out. He tensed up when he heard something, down below, in the ink-filled room.

Looking over the railing of the tall platform he stood on, Henry’s eyes widened at the sight of a creature, drenched in ink, with a projector on its head. He had seen it before, when he was exploring level 11. When did it get down here?

Was this the ‘friend’ “Alice” had mentioned?

As if on cue, “Alice’s” voice rang through the giant room from some speakers hidden somewhere.

"Shhh... there he is. The Projectionist. **Skulking in the darkness.** _You be sure to stay out of his light, if you don't want trouble._ Just bring me back the pieces I need."

Henry glared up at the ceiling and huffed, what a pain in the ass, why can’t she do all this shit herself?

Shaking his head, he returned to looking at the creature, the Projectionist, watching as it stumbled off, going into another area. With a dry swallow, Henry shivered, hoping to not run into that thing as he collected the hearts. Speaking of, he spotted a corpse of a Striker, a strange looking heart resting on its hand. Why hadn’t the body vanished, he wondered as he picked it up, setting it into the bag “Alice” had given him to carry the stuff she needed.

He began to descend the steps, trying to be quiet. He didn’t know if that thing could hear him, or if “Bendy” was near. This seemed like the perfect place for “Bendy” to appear and attack him, the place was flooded in ink! Glancing around, Henry tried to see if he could find anymore bodies, but he didn’t see much. He did spot something by the platform, three badly nailed up boards, seeming to block off an area.

Maybe he should explore it later?

He winced as he stepped into the ink, beginning to trudge through the thick, cold liquid. He glared up at the Bendy statue that stood in the room, it was huge, and unnecessary.

“Jeez, Joey, what is up with all this weird Bendy shit…” He grumbled to himself before spotting something, sitting on a crate.

An audio log? Hm, should he… well, he picked it up anyway and clicked play.

_"Now I’m not lookin' for trouble. It’s just the nature of us projectionists to seek out the dark places. You see, I’ve learned the ins and outs of this here studio. I know how to avoid being bothered by the likes of this... company. That projectionist, they always say, creepin' around, he’s just lookin’ for trouble. Well trouble or not, I sees everythin'. They don’t even know when I’m watchin’. Even when I’m right behind ‘em."_

It was Norman, the projectionist, and the message sounded… eerie… almost like some sort of warning, but Henry wasn’t sure if he should trust his gut on this. Though it did make him curious as to why it was down here, what did this place have to do with Norman anyway?

His answer came when he entered through one of the doorways by the statue.

Henry was greeted by the sight of projectors, sticking out of the ink, playing clips and episodes of Bendy’s show.

Well… that’s ominous…

He frowned and slowly started to trudge through the ink, at least this bizarre area was lit up by all the projectors, but it made it hard for him to know if they were the ones from the floor, or from the creature.

He spotted his second heart near the entrance, gathering that. Just three more to go…

He walked through the ink, glancing at the Bendy shorts that played, oh man, those brought him back, heh. He remembered animating a few of these, it’s nice to see them being played.

Henry soon spotted the next two hearts, happy that he just needed one more, and that the Projectionist had yet to spot him. As he walked, he noticed it, standing in front of a wall. It was shining its light on the wall, leaning in close, as if staring at the clip of Bendy strolling through a graveyard.

Watching it, Henry wondered if the thing could hear him at all, or even knew if he was there. He decided to just leave it be, and as he turned around, a sudden light hit his back.

Then he heard a horrible scream, it sounded like a metal rubbing against, it was almost as bad as “Bendy’s” screeches.

Turning sharply, Henry gasped as he was blinded by the bright light from the Projectionist. It screamed again and began to move towards him. Judging by all the bodies down here, Henry was sure that this thing was what killed all those Butcher Gang mutants, and Henry did NOT want to join them!

Yes, he’s come back from death twice now, but both of those strikes were from the Ink Demon and a swarm of Searchers, he didn’t know what this thing could do to him and he did not want to find out!

Henry bolted, trying to get away as fast as he could, which wasn’t exactly easy in the ink.

The Projectionist screamed again and Henry turned a corner, spotting a corpse with a heart, and he quickly grabbed it. But that was risky, especially because the thing was getting closer! Luckily, Henry spotted a Little Miracle Station and he threw open the door, slamming it shut behind him. His heart was beating so hard as he leaned back in the box, seeing the monster enter the area, turnings its head in different directions.

Just when the animator thought he was safe, the light focused on the box and the thing trudged over, throwing open the door. It made a terrible sound as it reached out, ready to attack…

But it stopped.

Henry blinked, staring at the Projectionist, seeing it shaking a little as it seemed to ‘stare’ at him. It made a strange, strangled noise out of its speaker on its chest before it stumbled back. Carefully, Henry stepped out of the box, watching the monster as it seemed too confused, too nervous to do anything. “Are… you okay?” He asked, but it didn’t seem to hear him.

It did, however, point at him, before pointing to a wall, where a clip of Bendy was playing.

Confused, Henry looked at the cartoon, seeing Bendy dancing. It was a clip from their first Bendy cartoon, the Dancing Demon. Henry’s first Bendy cartoon he animated…

Wait, did the Projectionist know who he was…?

Oh god, oh god… was this an old co-worker…?

It clicked in Henry’s head, he knew who this was…

The recording, the hidden, shadowed area, the projectors… this was Norman Polk.

“Oh God, Joey, no, what did you do to him…?” He winced, stepping closer to the Pro- no, Norman. “Norman, Norman can you hear me?” He asked, putting a hand on the other’s arm.

Norman didn’t seem to flinch, just staring at him, his light dimming slightly. He made a strange, run-down sound, like he was sighing, before he grabbed Henry’s right arm, the one holding the axe. He brought the arm and the weapon up, pressing the blade against the side of his projector head.

Henry’s eyes widened, and he shook his head. “No, no! I can’t-I can’t kill you…! Please don’t, I-I’m sure we can fix this! We can try! I’ll fix everythin’, I’ll try to save you! I’ll save you like I’ll save Boris, and the real Alice, and Bendy!”

The once-human just tapped the axe against himself again, letting out another worn-down sound. He was tried of his life, there was no repairing the damage done to him, he couldn’t be saved, he just wanted to die…

It took a while, but his memories returned to him, and it… it honestly scared him how he was no longer really a human. This body was terrifying, he killed in fits of rage and fear, the only thing to ever approach him without causing him to suddenly revert to a mindless creature was Bendy, before he vanished for a while…

The demon had found him by accident, when he had actually left this floor, and had cried and tried everything in his power to fix the old projectionist. But nothing worked… nothing he did could reverse what Joey had done.

Bendy had thought that Norman had vanished, just like a lot of the other employees had, before he realized that this was his fate. He hadn’t escaped, he hadn’t been hidden away, he had been turned into a monster to keep his mouth shut.

Norman didn’t blame Bendy, he wasn’t angry, Bendy hadn’t known, and neither did he.

He had tried to have Bendy kill him before, but the little guy just didn’t have it in him to kill someone like Norman, who meant him no harm. Just like with Boris, Bendy can’t kill someone he sees as a friend…

The once-human let out a metallic sigh and simply let go of Henry’s arm, staring at him, as if to send him a silent plea. It’s all he could ask for, he’s tried so many times, but his body won’t let him do it himself.

Henry let out a shaky breath from what Norman could tell, he could see tears springing to the man’s eyes as he lifted his axe.

He couldn’t hear him, but he read his lips.

“Please forgive me, Norman.”

The first strike hurt like all hell, slicing through one of the reels on his head. Norman screamed in pain, and Henry stopped, but he shook his head, motioning for him to continue. Another strike, more pain, another, it was starting to numb, his mind was starting to flicker…

Like an old bit of film that wasn’t stored right…

He started to feel… warm… for the first time in who knows how long, as he didn’t see darkness, he saw a bright light that wasn't his own.

_‘Thank you, ol’ friend…’_

\--

Henry panted hard, choking on air as he tried to hold back the sobs caught in his throat, his eyes burning with tears. His hands were covered in fresh ink… blood… ink-blood…

Norman’s ink.

Norman’s bl-blo…

He collapsed to his knees, his body shaking horribly as he struggled to breathe, the corpse of his friend resting in the ink. He didn’t notice that through the whole ordeal, the dancing clip of Bendy had stopped dancing and had watched in horror of a man having just performed a mercy kill.

Bendy was tense, still, his eyes wide and off-modeled as he watched Henry trying not to cry, trying not to panic.

“Bendy” was just like his cartoon counterpart, frozen in shock, having watched everything through the little Toon’s eyes. His grip on the audio log he had been holding slipped for a moment, but he quickly caught it.

He couldn’t… he couldn’t believe that…

His ink started to run as he felt a swirl of emotions, he couldn’t tell what he felt at the sight he had seen.

Henry… he didn’t… he hadn’t wanted to do that at all, but Norman, that old fool… he had wanted someone to finally put him out of his misery…

“Bendy” couldn’t have done it, he still… he felt like he couldn’t even do it now, even in this new, demonic form…

He could hear Henry’s strangled sounds from the cartoon and he focused on the human as he hunched over, coughing hard. He looked away at the retching, he didn’t blame the guy.

“Norman… I’m so sorry…” He heard Henry whisper in the quiet hall. “Bendy” watched as Henry stood up, almost falling over, he seemed out of it as he grabbed his axe out of the ink, his left hand gripping the strap of his bag for dear life.

The little Toon on the wall watched with a sad expression, seeing Henry stumble out of the area, heading out of the maze.

 _“E-even a traitor… doesn’t deserve to do such a thing like dat… ta have to hurt an ol' friend..."_  The cartoon mumbled before “Bendy” cut off his connection with it.

He frowned deeply, his ink was still running too much for his liking as he set the audio log down on the table in front of him. Maybe… maybe this was what Henry would need, to… help him out? He’d just need to get the man to come here.

He could… work a bit of his demonic magic on him, on the ink in his body, send him a command to come to this room.

He’d need it, he’d really need what was in here…

With a shaky breath, the Ink Demon slipped into a puddle, he needed… some time to think.

END

**Author's Note:**

> This hurt a lot to write, but honestly? As much as I want Norman to live, the poor guy is living a really shitty existence and I wanted some angst. Also, I already implied that he had died.
> 
> And in case if you’re wondering why Bendy can see through his cartoon self, the Bendys that were animated with the ‘special’ ink Henry was given are connected to Bendy. The 'special' ink I've mentioned a few times before is what would eventually be the ink used for Bendy.
> 
> I might… write a one-shot later for the big fic that will happen post-canon (that I’ve already started working on) of Henry speaking to Norman’s family, he wants them to have closure.
> 
> Thanks for reading! I made myself fucking cry with this!


End file.
